SARAH WILLIAMS

STAFF WRITER

Canadian folk-pop duo and Prince Edward County residents Kyra and Tully have been busy making music since the COVID-19 pandemic began and their newest single ‘Flowers Wild’ is the husband and wife pair’s first release of their fifth studio album, TIME.

With accolades from NOW Magazine, EXCLAIM and Bruce Cockburn, the family uprooted their lives last March just as the novel coronavirus descended and moved from their home in Kingston to the County with their son.

Now, the pair call Picton home-a change of scenery they credit as having influenced their newest works and perspective on life.

“Moving to Prince Edward County has inspired my music, my spirit and writing greatly. Everyday I feel nurtured by the vitality and natural beauty of this area, I fall more in love with the environment as we discover natural places and have adventures. Despite the pandemic we have encountered so many like-minded people that seem to be living life large, following their heart and doing what they love,” said Kyra. “ I feel more connected to the cosmos here, to the moon, the stars, the sky, the clouds, the birds, the flowers, myself. I love meadows and fields more than I ever have before. I have been very creative lately and actually wrote a new song inspired by the county.”

Kyra noted that, although the lyrics to their new single were not penned locally, the video was shot at the Heal With Horses Therapeutic Centre in Hillier.

Tully confirmed that the pandemic has not hindered their creative process.

“Considering it’s a pandemic, it’s still been great for us,” he said. “There’s definitely a vibe of people following their hearts and really appreciating life here.”

Like many of us, Kyra and Tully have experienced upheaval in the past year, both quitting their day jobs in Kingston and removing their special needs son from his school and respite supports. Despite this, the duo stated the change in their lives has been good for making music.

“It’s actually been really good for our music in many ways, except when it comes to live performances,” quipped Kyra.

Though the pair had originally planned to tour around in a camper van with their son, the pandemic had other plans and, as Kyra stated, Picton found them and became their Plan B.

“We made this decision months before the pandemic started,” she noted. “When we signed away our house in Kingston on March 15, 2020, we knew the pandemic was out there, but we felt in our hearts our decision was still the right one, and we pushed forward into the unknown.”

In fact, Kyra credits the pandemic with enabling her and Tully to remain situated as opposed to touring around the country with a teenager and two dogs, ultimately allowing them to focus more on their work.

“The pandemic has been good for us, to be settled in one place and not travelling around the country, with a special needs teenager and two puppies,” she said. “Honestly, I am super thankful everyday to the universe that we ended up here and not living in a camper van. I think things would have been a lot harder doing this work from the road.”

Nonetheless, the pair admit there are some challenges the pandemic has served up.

“There seems to be a bit more of a risk to everything now, even just leaving the house, but we decided we will work around it. We really wanted to have a great live show album release,” noted Tully. “The last couple of album releases have been in beautiful old churches in downtown Kingston. Matt Barber shared the bill with us at our last release and Bruce Cockburn and Jenn Grant the one before that. We will just have to do something a little later or differently, but it’s going to be big.”

Kyra and Tully’s fifth album, TIME, is now available for pre-order and will be available locally at Carbon Art and Design, located at 281B Main Street, Picton on November 5, 2020.

For more information about this musical duo, please visit: http://kyraandtully.com/category/news/

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